SuperData: Fortnite revenue back up, PUBG silently sells millions

SuperData analyst firm published their report on the worldwide digital games market in May 2019, and they found that Fortnite's recent slump is recovering on the back of Season 9, while PUBG keeps raking in dough away from the spotlight.

As was the case with SuperData's April 2019 report, Riot's League of Legends remains the leader on the PC side of things. On the lower end of the PC chart, Overwatch and Dota 2 managed to claw their way into the top 10 at the expense of CS: GO and Hearthstone.

Epic's battle royale didn't move on PC but it did reclaim its console lead, making $203 million on PC, consoles and mobile. Note that consoles account for the largest chunk of Fortnite's population and consequently revenue.

The result is apparently much better than Fortnite's performance in April 2019, but as much as 38 per cent lower compared to May 2018. SuperData claim that the recent slump "continues to drag both console and PC."

Speaking of slumps, FIFA Ultimate Team generated $93 million on PC and console, which is a decline compared to May 2018. However, SuperData pointed out this has a lot to do with the World Cup mode's strong initial showing last year, meaning it might not even be a slump.

Interestingly, SuperData found that PUBG has been quietly raking in the dough, far away from the spotlight.

"We estimate that PUBG has sold 4.7 million digital units across PC and console year-to-date through May, maintaining its position as one of the best selling shooter titles on any platform despite losing much of the spotlight to EA's Apex Legends and Fortnite", they wrote.

Total War: Three Kingdoms has done pretty well, selling 1 million copies one week into the launch and earning $62 in digital revenue in May.

SuperData
SuperData, May 2019

As for global spending, SuperData said that the $8.7 billion spent on PC, console and mobile is 4 per cent lower than in May 2018, which is chiefly caused by a 6 per cent decline in mobile.